The Comeback

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Former Mauritian Prime Minister Navinchandra Ramgoolam and his four-party coalition won Sunday’s parliamentary elections, following a vote heavily influenced by cost-of-living issues and a wiretapping scandal, Radio France Internationale reported Monday.

Incumbent Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth conceded Monday after partial results showed his five-party Alliance Lepep coalition was “heading towards a big defeat” against Ramgoolam’s Alliance du Changement.

Later in the day, results released at various constituencies showed that Jugnauth’s coalition failed to win any of parliament’s 62 seats, marking a major rejection for the current government, the Associated Press noted.

Voter turnout was around 80 percent, according to provisional estimates by election officials.

Though the election campaign was focused on the cost of living, Mauritius’ economy has been booming and the gross domestic product is expected to expand more than six percent a year until 2030, according to Bloomberg.

But there was mounting public outrage over alleged government corruption and fraud following a wiretapping scandal last month. Leaked recordings of politicians, police, business people and journalists prompted the Jugnauth administration to block social media sites earlier this month, citing national security concerns, Agence France-Presse noted.

The government reversed the decision before the Nov. 11 elections, but political observers noted that the prime minister’s crackdown alienated many voters.

Ramgoolam, who previously served as the island nation’s prime minister for three terms, vowed to reduce the price of food, fuel and medicine. The upcoming ruling coalition also pledged to raise pensions, improve infrastructure and overhaul the electoral system.

Located in the Indian Ocean, the country has seen peaceful transfers of power since it gained independence from the United Kingdom in 1968.

The election’s outcome comes more than a month after the UK returned sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius.